The invention concerns a method for setting a position of manipulating arms on a supporting frame and a supporting frame for positioning the manipulating arms fitted with tools for attaching technological or measuring means.
For car bodywork manufacture, frames with many suckers fixed to a network of points on a frame are used. The frame is manipulated by a robot. A plate is attached to the frame by sucking the suckers in many points numbering an order of tens and it is put into a press by the robot. The pressed plate is attached to the frame by sucking in many points again and it is taken out from the press by the robot. A problem is to re-arrange the suckers or other active members on a frame when switching-over from pressing one component to another component. It would be very costly to fit a frame with as many actuators or sensors as suckers or other action members. Another problem is a fact that actuators would probably include metal components and there is a tendency to make the frame with suckers or other action members from nonmetallic easily deformable materials. The reason is that a robot malfunction occurs from time to time and a frame gets pressed together with a plate. If the frame included metal components, the press die damage would occur resulting in a large loss. If the frame is made from nonmetallic easily deformable materials, the press die damage will not occur and a loss will be far smaller. For example carbon fiber composites are an example of nonmetallic materials. As such a frame with many actuators and sensors would be too expensive and complicated, frames are re-arranged manually and this requires a storehouse for these frames.
A similar frame can include other mechanisms for handling, for measuring and/or machining or forming.
A disadvantage of these frames is both their price and complexity at higher number of actuators and sensors and difficultness of the manufacture of particular components on a frame or, on the contrary, manual work required.
The aim of this invention is to simplify relocation of suckers, or more precisely tools for attaching technological or measuring members positioned on a supporting frame and to design manipulating arms for carrying these suckers, or more precisely tools, made mainly from nonmetallic easily deformable materials.